


from screen to screen they're travelin'

by mozaikmage



Category: Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018), モブサイコ100 | Mob Psycho 100
Genre: Crossover, Gen, McDonald's, Offbrand Naruto
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-17
Updated: 2019-06-17
Packaged: 2020-05-13 13:16:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,787
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19251961
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mozaikmage/pseuds/mozaikmage
Summary: The multidimensional rift spits the spider gang out in the...mob psycho 100 universe.





	from screen to screen they're travelin'

**Author's Note:**

  * For [pepperfield](https://archiveofourown.org/users/pepperfield/gifts).



> for Relle! I mentioned this concept to you once in DMs 2 months ago and then finally wrote it and now here it is. please enjoy  
> title from Wonderlust King by Gogol Bordello

The multiverse rift spits the Spider-gang out into an empty city street. They land in their respective fighting stances and take stock of their surroundings. It’s immediately clear they’re not in any version of New York, and probably not even in any of their home universes. The thing that sets Miles on edge is, oddly enough, the curb of the sidewalk. It seems both too smooth and too wobbly to be entirely correct, and definitely too flat to be real.

“Where are we?” Gwen asks, taking a cautious step forward.

Peni gasps and points at a store sign written in bold Japanese characters. “We’re in Japan!”

“Okay,” Peter says. “Japan, that’s cool. But uh… which Japan? Whose, I mean? Who’s the spiderperson in this reality?”

“Not mine,” everyone says in unison. It’s hard to explain how they know, but it just doesn’t…look quite right. There aren’t enough shadows or details, and the colors seem duller than they should be.

“Cool,” says Peter again. “Great. Okay. Anyone have any ideas as to why we ended up here?”

The other five spider-people shrug. As if to answer Peter’s question, the familiar sound of buildings getting smashed echoes in the distance. They exchange a look and sling themselves towards the noise.

It starts as a routine exorcism. Mob is handling it for the most part, but the rest of the psychic kids, Teru and Shou and Ritsu are trying to help too. Reigen leans back against the wall and pretends to be calm while the children attack a massive, monstrous swamp spirit. Tome stands next to him, bouncing up and down on the balls of her feet as if waiting for an opportunity to jump in. Dimple hovers and offers a running commentary.

And then  _ they _ show up.

A group of people (mostly) in spiderweb-patterned jumpsuits, as well as a red spider-shaped mech? Come swinging down the side alley using spiderwebs.

“Need some help?” asks the mech in polite, high-pitched Japanese.

Reigen stares at its cutesy round face. “Uh. What? Who are you?”

“We’re superheroes from another universe!” Tome perks up at that. “Well, six other universes. We fight monsters too! Can we help?” The mech is the only spider-creature talking. The rest of them hang back sheepishly. “I’m the only one of us who knows Japanese,” the mech adds, as if sensing the question.

“Uh.”  As Reigen’s about to decline, Mob disappears into the sludge of the swamp spirit’s muddy body. “Shit. Mob!”

“You know what, sure, go ahead,” Reigen allows, like he’s the authority here. The weirdos could hardly make it worse, right?

The spider-people launch themselves at the swamp monster. The mecha Reigen was talking to earlier wraps its metallic appendages around the monster’s body while shooting lasers, which looks pretty cool, Reigen has to admit. Their spiderwebs restrain the sludge monster and press it closer to the ground, making it seem like a more manageable threat than before.

Tome has her phone out and camera on, snapping pictures and recording the fight. “I  _ knew _ parallel universes were real, I knew it, I  _ knew _ it,” she keeps muttering.

“You know, this isn’t what I thought I’d be doing on my first trip to Japan!” the black-and-red spider person yells in English from atop the sludge monster’s head. Reigen can sort of understand it, but the words are muffled by the person’s mask, and he’s out of practice since high school English classes.

“We can go buy Naruto merch later,” pink-and-white spider ballerina yells back at him as she backflips off the monster. “If this universe has Naruto.”

“Every universe has Naruto,” black-and-red responds. “Yours does! Even Spider-ham’s universe has an animal version of Naruto!”

Reigen has no idea what they’re talking about, or why they’re talking about it in the middle of monster fighting.

“These guys are weird,” Shou says to Ritsu, who rolls his eyes and tells Shou to focus on the important part.

Teru and Ritsu try to pull Mob out of the sludge, but before they can grab him, the pile of mud disintegrates into dust. Underneath is Mob, dry, clean, unharmed, 78% of the way to an explosion, hanging fifteen feet in the air. He floats down to the ground slowly, ignoring all of the superheroes and espers trying to catch him in the process.

“I found the thing the spirit was possessing inside the mud and destroyed that,” Mob explains once he’s landed. “Like that time Shishou had me exorcise the farmland spirit. Shishou, who are these people?”

The mecha runs a line of English text translating Mob’s words across its screen for the spider-people, who look confused. “Spirits? Exorcising? You mean this wasn’t a monster?” 

“I guess things work differently in this world!” the mecha chirps, in English and Japanese. Its domed red covering opens up and a schoolgirl around Mob’s age climbs out, waving cheerfully. “Nice to meet you! I’m Peni Parker. I’m half-Japanese. This is Spiderman, Spider-ham, Spider-noir, New Spiderman, and Spider-Gwen. Or uh, Peter B. Parker, Porker or Ham, we usually just call him Noir, Miles Morales, and Gwen Stacy. We’re from different version of New York City, in America.” Peter, Miles and Gwen pull off their masks as Peni introduces them, revealing a middle-aged man and two teenagers slightly older than the Seasoning City kids.

Reigen clears his throat and bows with a flourish. “Nice to meet you,” he says, in heavily accented English. “I’m renowned psychic—” behind him, Ritsu shakes his head and mouths “not really” to the foreigners “—and head of the Spirits and Such Consultation Office, Reigen Arataka!” He pauses. No one applauds, though Mob smiles encouragingly. “This is my... worker, Mob. His brother Ritsu. Teru. Shou. Tome. And uh...” Reigen locks eyes with Teru, who’s a reasonably good student and probably knows words. “What’s ‘Ekubo’ in English?”

“Dimple,” Teru says, pointing at the green spirit hovering over Mob’s shoulder. “This guy’s name is Dimple. Can you see Dimple?”

The spider-people stare at Dimple. Dimple scowls at them.

“Is that a...talking booger?” Miles asks, squinting.

“It looks like a fart with a face,” says Ham. Teru laughs out loud. 

“Oi!” Dimple says, offended. “I am a very powerful evil spirit!” His English is about as rusty as Reigen’s, but it’s understandable.

“If you’re evil, then why are you hanging around with these guys?” Gwen asks, taking care to speak slowly and carefully.

Ritsu looks up at the sky and sighs. 

“Long, long story,” Reigen interrupts. “How much time will you spend here?”

The oldest spider-person, Peter B. Parker, shrugs. “Until the dimensional rift opens up again. Probably a few hours.” As if on cue, his stomach grumbles. “Is there anywhere we could get something to eat?”

“Yes, Reigen-san, it is dinnertime,” Shou says loudly. “Feed us. And the foreigners.”

“If it’s not too much trouble,” Noir adds.

Reigen is forced to mentally calculate several things: the fact that instead of treating five teenagers to dinner as a reward for a job well done, he suddenly has to treat five teenagers and six interdimensional travelers, and the fact that his wallet was not anticipating that much feeding of people.

“Yes,” Reigen says. “Dinner. Authentic! Japanese! Dinner!”

 

They go to MobDonald’s.

Reigen gets the same thing he usually gets for his group, and Peni orders for the spider-people. Apparently, MobDonald’s is called McDonald’s in most of their universes, but the menu’s similar enough that they have no trouble selecting what they want.

In the confined space of the fast food establishment, it’s clear that the spider-people aren’t just cosplayers or foreigners, but from different universes. The colors of their clothes are brighter and the fluorescent light of the Mobdonald’s seems to bounce off them differently. They move a little strangely, too, like time and space aren’t the same as they’re used to. It’s fascinating. Tome appears to be taking notes.

Peni and Tome bond instantly, chattering about how exciting interdimensional travel is and how different this world is from Peni’s home universe. The rest of them, with more of a language barrier between them, stare awkwardly across the three tables they shoved together. The locals are on one side of the table, the spider gang on the other. Reigen slides in at one end across from Peter B., holding two plastic trays laden in burgers and packets of fries and ketchup. “Help yourself.”

“Thank you for your hospitality,” Noir says to Reigen. 

Reigen waves him off. “It’s nothing! You’re very welcome.”

Miles examines his BigMob with some curiosity. “I was kinda hoping for sushi, or ramen...”

Reigen smiles widely. “This is an authentic Japanese burger restaurant! Please, enjoy your authentic Japanese fries!”

Peter B. Parker has no reservations and devours his burger and fries in three seconds flat. “Burgers,” he sighs happily. “equally delicious everywhere.”

“Something about this experience feels familiar, for some reason,” Miles says.

Teru stares at the small, oddly elastic Spider-Ham sitting across from him. “So, uh, Ham-san,” Teru begins. “Do you eat meat? Is that uh... strange? For you?”

Spider-Ham, who is about to eat his entire burger in one massive bite, looks at Teru and pauses. “Do animals talk here?”

“No.”

“Then it’s fine.” Spider-Ham gulps his burger.

Teru smiles without it reaching his eyes. “Ah.”

Gwen pulls out her phone and types into the translator app. “That thing you did with the monster was really cool. How do your powers work, exactly?” She smiles at Mob, who blushes slightly from the attention.

“Uh, Teru-kun, can I borrow your phone, please?” Teru, in the middle of interrogating Spider-Ham about animal sentience in a mix of English and pantomime, doesn’t turn around, just lifts the phone out of his pocket and deposits it in Mob’s hand with his telekinesis. Gwen’s eyes widen.

Mob types slowly and deliberately, tapping each key with an unnecessary amount of force, and hits the translate button. “I can move things with telekinesis, and absorb and transfer psychic energy. I don’t usually use my full power.” 

“Ritsu's brother’s full power is scary!” Shou interjects. “Cool! But scary. Lots of houses go boom.” 

Gwen looks at Mob, the small, plain-looking middle schooler currently nibbling a french fry, and then back at Shou.

“Bwoosh,” Shou adds, waving his hands to imitate an explosion. “Really. Hundred percent  _ scary. _ ”

Mob stares at the fry in his hands and pulls his shoulders up. “Uh...yes.”

Ritsu is squinting at Spider-Noir. “You are...black and white.” 

Noir nods. His coat billows behind him, even though they are indoors. He adjusts the fedora on his head. “My world is mainly shades of gray. It’s symbolic.”

“I see,” says Ritsu, not seeing. 

Noir takes a long drag of his iced seltzer water. “Does the darkness torment you, young man?”

“Again, please?”

“Does...the darkness... torment... you?”

Ritsu gazes into the blank white circles of Spider-Noir’s costume. It feels as though these shiny empty lenses are probing through his mind and soul. A chill runs through him and he pushes himself away from the table. 

“Sorry, I can’t understand what you’re saying.” Ritsu gets up and goes to grab some more napkins.

They end up lingering in the restaurant for the better part of an hour. Peni’s delighted to use her mecha as a giant translator for everybody, once Peter B. suggests it. The underpaid Mobdonald’s staff seem entirely unfazed by the massive otherworldly robot dragged into their restaurant. Most businesses in Seasoning City have really good insurance since the first time psychics destroyed the town in battle.

“Do you guys have Naruto here?” Miles types into SP//DR’s display screen. He pulls out a marker and grabs a napkin and sketches a rendition of a spiky-haired anime character, and the teens pass it around. 

“Oh, that’s...Orange Ninja Boy,” says Shou.

Miles lets out a “HA!” and points at Gwen. “I  _ told  _ you! Every universe!”

Gwen rolls her eyes, biting back a smile. “Congrats, nerd.”

The sun is setting, golden rays slicing through the big glass windows. Reigen looks at Peter B, the only person in the Spider-people group that seems even close to a real adult, and therefore the most likely to know what’s going on. “When do you all have to leave?” 

Peter B. shrugs. “Whenever the rift opens up again.” He pulls up his red-and-blue sleeve and looks at a watch with a cracked face. “Probably within the next hour or two.” Peter sighs and pushes back from the table. “We should get going, since it will most likely be in the same place it appeared the first time.”

Reigen lost track of that sentence, but he understands the “We should get going” part.

“Yes, of course!” Reigen jumps up. “Everyone done? Let’s go!” 

 

They clean up after themselves, Teru surreptitiously levitating his garbage into the bin instead of throwing it out with his hands like a normal person. It’s after rush hour, so the streets aren’t too crowded for their huge group, but Reigen’s still worried they’ll all get lost somehow. Miles sketched the street corner they landed on as best as he could remember, and Peni filled in the signs she saw, which pinpointed the location to a few blocks away from Salt Middle School.

“Very good teamwork,” Reigen says encouragingly to the spider-teens, who smile and nod awkwardly.

 

Tome and Peni run ahead of everyone, followed by Spider-Ham and Mob, who is examining Spider-Ham’s bizarre cartoon gadgetry with Dimple hovering nearby. Ritsu walks close to his brother, head down and hands shoved in his sweatshirt pocket. Teru and Shou are discussing comics and manga with Gwen and Miles a few steps behind. Bringing up the rear is Noir, walking slowly and purposefully, and Reigen, who suddenly finds himself in step with Peter B. Parker.

Reigen tries to observe Peter B. without making it super obvious that’s what he’s doing. He’s a lot taller and leaner than Reigen is, but also older, with more wrinkles on his long face. He walks like he’s ready to break into a run at any moment, while still moving slowly enough to stay in the back of the group.

In front of them, Shou levitates an Orange Ninja Boy keychain in front of Miles’s face. The other boy is laughing delightedly. 

“Okay okay, watch this,” he says, and then just. Vanishes. He reappears a few seconds later. “Neat, right?”

“Neat,” Shou agrees.

Peter chuckles. Reigen looks over. “What’s so funny?”

“When I first met Miles,” Peter explains, speaking slowly so Reigen can understand him, “he had just gotten his powers. Didn’t know how to control them at all. Now he’s protecting his universe’s version of New York City all by himself. And he can do stuff I could never learn how to do.” He stares into the distance, into the light of the setting sun. “It’s...humbling. These children are all so much more smart and talented than we are, but they still look to us for guidance.”

Reigen takes a few moments to translate that in his head. “Yes,” he says. “But we have more... experience. With the world. That’s important.”

Peter smiles at him, slightly crookedly. “Yeah.”

“We just have to do our best to not...” Reigen frowns, unsure of the words.

“Screw them up?” Peter suggests.

Reigen snaps his fingers and gestures towards Peter. “Yes! Not screw them up!”

Shou is now levitating Miles far above the ground. Reigen looks around to see if anyone is watching them, but the streets are empty save for their group. “This feels weird,” Miles yells. Shou releases him and Miles does a double flip to land on his feet.

“I think they’re going to be just fine,” Peter says, quiet and sure.

 

By the time they reach the street corner again, the rift has reopened. It hangs high in the air, swirling and glowing and spitting out strange geometric shapes that remind Reigen of Mob’s worst spirit battles.

The spider-people say goodbye. Shou gives Miles the Orange Ninja Boy keychain, and Miles trades him a blank label with a doodle of Shou on it. Tome and Peni exchange contact information, since Peni has some way to send messages across the multiverse, apparently. Ham gives Teru a bizarre hammer thing that he says he has a “lifetime supply” of. 

Reigen and Peter shake hands.

And then, one by one, the Spider-gang scales the side of the office building and bounces off it into the multidimensional rift. The rift seals up behind them, not leaving a single trace of their alternate universe visitors.

They stare at the innocent patch of sky for a few moments, as if expecting it to open up again, but nothing else happens.

“That was nice,” says Mob. 

“Yeah,” Reigen agrees. 

**Author's Note:**

> [tumblr](http://cubistemoji.tumblr.com/) [twitter](http://twitter.com/mashazart/)  
> 


End file.
